


Communication

by waterlily242019



Series: Inktober 2019 [5]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Kissing, Love Confessions, M/M, Team as Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-14
Updated: 2019-10-14
Packaged: 2020-12-16 07:35:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21032591
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/waterlily242019/pseuds/waterlily242019
Summary: Being caught up in her thoughts and conflicted emotions did not alert Pidge to Keith and Lance’s presence in the room until she noticed them at the corner of her vision. She felt her cheeks metaphorically burst into flame as she noticed the cocky, knowing smirk on Lance’s face. Gods, what she wouldn’t give to be able to go over there and wipe it off with her fist.“Talking to your boyfriend?” Lance teased, earning an elbow in the ribs from Keith.“Come over here, McClain so I can punch that arrogant smirk off your face,” Pidge growled, whipping around to face the disaster duo, “And maybe yeet you into next week while I’m at it.”“And how do you plan on doing that, shorty?” the brown-haired young man taunted, “Honey, I amat leasta foot taller than you. You’d either need a step stool or to sit on someone’s shoulders in order to do that.”Keith’s lips twisted into a devious smirk, “Maybe you can ask Hunk. I bet he’d do it for ya'.”“Next time we’re in a ship, I amsothrowing you both out the airlock,” the brown-haired young woman grumbled through her teeth, turning her back on her friends and plopping back in her chair.





	Communication

**Author's Note:**

> Welp, I was trying not to re-use fandoms, but oh well. This prompt lends itself far too easily to the technology and mechanical-loving Team Punk from Voltron. Plus, I’m a sucker for blindly pining couple whose friends are so over their ish and just want to lock them in a closet together so they can just make out already. 
> 
> For those reading at home, this story takes place in a canon-divergent universe where, after the real Shiro was brought back at the end of season 6, Keith stepped down from the role of the black paladin, allowing Shiro to return to his place as leader of the team. This event caused the team to fall back into their previous positions: Shiro as black paladin, Keith as red paladin, Lance as blue paladin, Hunk as yellow paladin, and Pidge as green paladin. The basic story events of season 7 still transpire: the Galra take the fight to Earth, the paladins get there too late, the Atlas, commanded by Allura, is built and joins the fight with the paladins, Shiro and Keith put an end to Sendak. The team finally hunts down Haggar, attempts to destroy the universe for her own gain. Instead of her and Allura dying, though, the lions are surrendered to fix the gaping holes in the universe. All of the destroyed planets are restored, and the team scatters to help mend the universe, though they keep in constant contact thanks to some advanced Blade communicators tinkered with by Pidge. 
> 
> Anyway, enough background. Let’s get into it. 
> 
> Prompt #5: Build  
Pairing/Series: Pidge/Hunk, Keith/Lance, and Shiro/Allura from Voltron: Legendary Defender

Pidge scowled at the bespectacled robot in front of her. How could everything look so perfect and yet malfunction so badly? She grumbled to herself, hoisting herself off her chair and pacing the room. She and Matt had started working on the damn thing together, and of course, he’d been called upon for Garrison stuff, so now she was trying to put together a piece of machinery without a mechanic. Maybe that was why the robot limped. She sighed aloud, trying to will a helpful person into existence. Seriously,  _ anyone _ she could have bounced ideas off of would have been helpful. 

“Yo, Pidge!” a deep, male voice called from over her shoulder, causing her to jump nearly a foot in the air. 

“Gah! Keith!” she exclaimed, whipping around to face him, “What are you doing here? Didn’t I tell you to stay out?”

“Your mom asked me to come get you,” he responded in a neutral tone, “Dinner’s ready.” 

Pidge heaved a heavy sigh, glancing back toward the robot before taking a few steps toward Keith. Her exasperated sigh caused him to raise an eyebrow and over at the hunk of machinery resting on a small, raised platform. Nothing appeared outwardly wrong with it; in fact, it looked eerily human-like aside from the bolts holding the metal skin together. She knew the truth, though; the android did not function like it was supposed to. It walked with a limp and it’s voice features sounded like screeching banshees. 

The dark-haired young man tilted his head and regarded the machine with a small scowl, “Is it broken or somethin’?”

“Sort of,” the brown-haired young woman replied with another resigned sigh, “It doesn’t walk right, and it’s supposed to respond when you talk, but it sounds more like screeching than actual talking.” 

“You should call Hunk,” Keith suggested, “I can tell your mom you’re busy.” 

“Keiiiiiiiith,” a whiny, male voice echoed from down the hallway, “C’mon! I wanna be obnoxiously cute and sit next to my boyfriend at dinner!” 

Pidge snickered, glancing over at Keith, who was much more flushed than he was a few minutes ago, “Duty calls, lover boy.” 

Keith coughed into his fist, briefly glaring at Pidge before his hardened, violet eyes softened a bit, “Call Hunk. I’m sure he’ll be able to help you fix it. I’ll cover for you.” 

Pidge flashed a smile of relief at Keith, “Thanks. I appreciate it.”

He waved his hand, “No worries. I really gotta go, though. Otherwise, I’ll never hear the end of it.” 

With that, the former red paladin ducked out of the former green paladin’s lab and left her alone. Pidge waffled for a few minutes before having the courage to stride over to her communicator. Out of all the team members, Hunk was the one she had talked to the least since everything with Haggar had transpired. The only other two she talked to less were Shiro and Allura, but even they had come to stay at her house to celebrate the anniversary of the war’s end. Hunk was the only one still free-floating in space, doing diplomatic work and trying to get alien cultures to come together in peace. She did not want to bother him, but she also missed him greatly, considering he was the only one who she could talk to on a similar level and not have him make confused faces or ask “what” every five minutes. She hesitated in taking her friend’s advice, but, in the end, she grabbed the communicator, booted it up, and started calling Hunk, hoping he would have just a small fraction of time for an old friend.  _ The worst thing that could happen is he doesn’t answer, right?  _

After two rings, Pidge reached for the ‘end call’ button, but before she could press it, Hunk’s face flashed across her screen and he said, “This is Hunk.”

Her expression brightened almost instantly, “Hey, Hunk, it’s Pidge! Are you busy?”

“I mean, I’m just flying a ship,” he replied with a bright grin, “But I have time to talk to y- ahh!” 

Hunk’s screen appeared to jerk sharply and Pidge nearly jumped out of her seat, “Don’t get yourself hurt! I can wait till you land!”

“I’m good, I’m good,” he responded with a reassuring smile, “I just got distracted and didn’t notice an asteroid that was heading right for me. Dodged it just in time. I’m starting to be fast like Keith and Lance.”

“If you try to off yourself, I  _ will  _ slap you into the next dimension,” she jokingly threatened. 

“Don’t worry, I’m not  _ that _ insane,” he replied with a small chuckle, “So, what’s up?”

“I built an android!” Pidge exclaimed, walking over to where Chip was perched, “But… There are some funny things going on with it and I wanted to get your opinion.”

“That’s awesome!” Hunk replied, an excited smile stretching across his face, “Can I see it?”

The former green paladin nodded and turned the communicator around so that the former yellow paladin could see what she was talking about. The android was small, probably about the same height as Pidge. In fact, it looked a lot like a male version of her with metal skin and a male haircut. It even had thin, black glasses perched upon its nose. Hunk could tell that she was very proud of her creation, so much so that he could almost picture the beaming smile on her face, even though the camera was faced away from her. 

“That looks really cool, Pidge,” he commented, frowning a bit, “So, what’s going on with it?”

“Well, I guess the thing you can help me most with is the legs. It doesn’t walk right,” she explained, briefly turning the camera back to her before turning it around again, “Chip, walk.”

The robot stumbled down from its pedestal and limped along the floor of the work lab. Hunk put his ship on autopilot, watching the android stumble around on the other end of the call. He noticed the right leg dragging behind the left. He tried to picture the structure of the android in his mind and told Pidge, “Look at the right hip. There might be a loose gear there or something. If you tighten it up, he might walk better.” 

Pidge followed Hunk’s instructions and the look of delight that spread across her face made him wish he had a camera, “Hey, it’s working great now! Thanks, Hunk, you’re the best!”

The former yellow paladin felt his cheeks heat slightly, “It was a simple fix, really. Is anything else going on with it?”

“Erm, well, I don’t think this fix is going to be as simple,” the former green paladin commented with a small scowl, “Listen to this. Chip, what’s the weather supposed to be like, today?”

The noise the android emitted startled Hunk briefly, “Jesus! Please tell me you don’t ask the android questions a lot…”

“No,” Pidge replied with a sigh, “I think it might be the speaker, but I’m not sure.”

“I can take a look at it if you want,” he commented with a shy smile.

“How can you?” she asked, her brow wrinkling in confusion, “You’re thousands of lightyears away.”

“Well, I’m actually only thousands of  _ miles _ away,” Hunk clarified, noting Pidge’s bewildered expression and continuing, “I’m coming back to Earth.”

“But aren’t you in the middle of negotiations with the Clarons?” she asked, her eyebrows raising slightly in surprise. 

“I mean, we are, but Shay’s covering for me,” he replied, scratching his cheek, “I told her that Shiro and Allura were getting married.” 

“Oh my god,” she exclaimed, bursting into laughter, “They’re going to  _ kill  _ you if they find out.” 

“Then don’t tell them!” Hunk protested with a small pout, “Anyway, do you want me to come straight to the lab when I get there?”

“That would be great!” Pidge replied with a grin that faltered slightly when she said, “I miss you.”

His expression briefly morphed into melancholy, “I miss you too…” Thankfully, it brightened not even a moment later and he grinned confidently at her, “But don’t worry, I’ll be back soon. I’ll see you when I land, ‘kay?”

“‘Kay,” she replied, saluting him with two fingers, “Team Punk, out.”

“Team Punk out!” he added, mimicking the gesture back at her before closing the communication line. 

Pidge could not help but lean back in her chair, feeling an unbidden smile cross her cheeks. Hunk was coming back! She was so grateful to have the opportunity to see him after such a long time. She had not dwelled on it much while they were talking, but he appeared to have grown a bit taller, gotten a smidge leaner, and maybe put on some extra muscles during his time away. She also had not neglected to notice the stubble growing on his chin. She shook her head violently, trying to banish the thoughts trying to creep back into her head. She had gotten over her feelings along time ago; she was  _ not  _ allowed to be catching them again. 

Being caught up in her thoughts and conflicted emotions did not alert Pidge to Keith and Lance’s presence in the room until she noticed them at the corner of her vision. She felt her cheeks metaphorically burst into flame as she noticed the cocky, knowing smirk on Lance’s face. Gods, what she wouldn’t give to be able to go over there and wipe it off with her fist.

“Talking to your boyfriend?” Lance teased, earning an elbow in the ribs from Keith.

“Come over here, McClain so I can punch that arrogant smirk off your face,” Pidge growled, whipping around to face the disaster duo, “And maybe yeet you into next week while I’m at it.”

“And how do you plan on doing that, shorty?” the brown-haired young man taunted, “Honey, I am  _ at least  _ a foot taller than you. You’d either need a step stool or to sit on someone’s shoulders in order to do that.”

Keith’s lips twisted into a devious smirk, “Maybe you can ask Hunk. I bet he’d do it for you.”

“Next time we’re in a ship, I am  _ so _ throwing you both out the airlock,” the brown-haired young woman grumbled through her teeth, turning her back on her friends and plopping back in her chair. 

“Hey. I miss him too, ya know,” Lance’s voice was suddenly closer than it had been a few minutes ago, and Pidge felt the weight of his hand on her shoulder, “I think you miss him most of all, though.”

“We used to be so close,” Pidge murmured, turning the communicator over and over in her hands, “Now it feels like we never talk anymore. And when we do…” 

Her heavy sigh spurred Keith to move forward as well, taking a spot beside Lance and rubbing an arm across Pidge’s back, “The feelings come rushing back?”

“I never asked for them,” she demanded, tossing the communicator on the table, “But they just keep showing back up! Like, like glitter! Or a bad case of herpes…”

“Ewww, Pidge!” Lance exclaimed, withdrawing his hand from Pidge’s shoulder, “Why would you compare love to venereal diseases? That’s nasty!”

“You should tell him how you feel,” Keith commented from the side, wrapping his arms around Lance’s waist and pulling his flailing boyfriend against him, “Either that or just grab him by the front of the shirt and smooch him. That’s what I did with Lance.”

Pidge groaned, “Keith, you’re  _ six-five _ ! Of course, you can just grab the front of Lance’s shirt and lay one on him. You’re basically the Hulk!”

“I am not!” Keith protested, his incoming rant interrupted by the sound of a whirring ship engine coming from above them. 

Pidge bolted from the lab and out to the front lawn, where Hunk landed his ship safely, though a little too roughly. The small craft ended up creating a hole in the ground, which made her wince. She forgot all about the damage to her parents’ property, though, when she saw him trying to climb out of the hole that he had created with the ship. She jogged closer to it and offered him her hands so she could help pull him up. The combination of his leverage on the ship and her strength added to his brought him out of the ditch and sent them tumbling back into the dry, tan grass of her front lawn. They both let out a surprised yelp, and Pidge found herself with her back to the grass and Hunk hovering over her, with a hand on either side of her body. He coughed, his face flushing slightly and immediately backed off, offering her a hand to use to sit up. 

“Are you okay?” Hunk asked, sounding genuinely concerned as he helped Pidge sit forward. 

Pidge paused for a moment, realizing how close she was to Hunk, “Y-yeah. Just… I missed you.”

“I missed you too,” he replied with a sheepish smile and a blush that was definitely creeping further up his face, “H-hey, did you want to go look at that android?”

“Yeah,” Pidge replied, laying a hand on Hunk’s shoulder, “But first…” 

She tilted her head slightly, leaning forward as her eyes slid closed and locking their lips together in a brief kiss. To her surprise, his lips moved against hers in response, and after a second, they both pulled away. His brown eyes were alight with happiness and a bit of confusion. Her heart, which had only been pounding a second ago, slowed in her chest and a soft smile crossed her face. 

“C’mon,” Pidge exclaimed, clambering to her feet and attempting to pull Hunk up with her, “I have to introduce you to Chip.”

Hunk chuckled, standing up and dusting the dead grass off himself and reaching over to dust it off Pidge’s back before reaching for her hand, “That sounds great.”

The former green paladin took the former yellow paladin’s hand and squeezed it gently, hoping the gesture would communicate what her words failed to say. Thankfully, Hunk was very familiar with Pidge and her communication methods, even after all their time apart, so he laced their fingers together and smiled, allowing her to pull him toward her lab while babbling excitedly the whole way.

**Author's Note:**

> Ugh, these two are so precious and I love them so much. Both of them definitely deserved more screen time in the show overall. (There’s a lot more I could say about the show, but I’m not here to do hot takes for a show that’s been finished for almost a year. I’m here to write stories.)
> 
> So, in case you couldn’t tell, all the main paladins are paired off with one another. Pidge and Hunk, Keith and Lance, and Shiro and Allura. And yes, I know, in canon, Shiro is gay, but I have a headcanon that Shiro is bi, so neh. 
> 
> Like I said earlier, I was really trying not to re-use fandoms, but I couldn’t resist this one. Anyway, join me next time folks, when we venture into the world of doggos and puppers.


End file.
